Murder, Inc.

Murder, Inc. was a Jewish and Italian contract killing organization that existed during the 1930s and 1940s in New York City. The organization was founded by gangsters Meyer Lansky and Bugsy Siegel, and the gang grew to include not only the Jewish mobsters hired by Lansky and Siegel at first, but also mafiosi loyal to Lucky Luciano. Murder, Inc. served as the enforcement arm of the American Mafia and Jewish Mob for a whole decade, and the group was responsible for up to 1,000 murders by the 1940s, when the government cracked down on the Murder, Inc. criminals. Abe Reles' testimony led to the executions of Louis Buchalter and Harry Strauss, and Jacob Shapiro and other leaders died in prison.